Mid-year check-in: slowly but surely

Summer is the perfect moment to slow down a little. No need to wait until September to reflect on how you're doing.

Slowing down isn’t always easy. But honestly? That’s when I feel the clearest.When I allow myself to breathe, to not fill every gap.. ideas come up. Clarity appears. And most of all: energy returns - softly but surely.

In this edition, I’m inviting you to do a little inner check-up - no pressure, no guilt. Just a moment for yourself.

I’m sharing 3 little exercises to help you pause and reflect this summer - without guilt, and without needing to fly off to a yoga retreat on the other side of the world.

#1 Your check-up star

In the daily chaos of to-do lists, back-to-back meetings and drinks with friends.. Do we really take time for ourselves?

Here’s a chance to do a little mental check-up. Kind of like going to the doctor - but for your inner self.

 Here's how:

• Draw a 5-pointed star (or more if you’d like)

• Assign one life category to each pointFor example: work, social life, health/well-being, love, spirituality... 

• Give each point a score from 1 to 10. Trust your intuition

• Then take a moment to reflect:Why that score? What made it go up-or down? 

• Finally: is there a small action you could take this summer to shift something? 

This isn’t about aiming for perfection. It’s just about checking in. Coming back to what really matters. Tuning into how you’re truly feeling.

PS: You can also zoom in on just one category. For example:

Work → alignment, relationships, money, growth, balanceHealth → sleep, stress, food, movement, energy..

#2 Your 4-season cycle

What if personal or professional growth wasn’t linear… but cyclical?

I loved Matthieu Dardaillon’s take on this. He talks about growth as a cycle of 4 seasons - just like nature. Very Olitas-style. This model reminds us: it’s OK to have low-energy phases. Sometimes, stepping back is what allows us to move forward.

 And you? Where are you in your cycle right now? Do you give yourself permission to slow down? To innovate? To empty out?

You can even draw your own 4-season cycle - and see what it teaches you about your pace.  -> Here are the 4 seasons of energy:

Summer: fire, excitement, action, performance  Autumn: slowing down, adjusting, digesting  Winter: pause, rest, retreat, reset  Spring: soft energy, new ideas, gentle momentum

#3 Your summer Non-To-Do list

Ok. Truth time: I’m tired. I need a real break.

So this summer, I made myself a special to-do list - with just one rule: nothing productive allowed.

Here’s a little glimpse of mine:

• Dive into the Atlantic

• Try a loooots of pastéis de nata

• Walk barefoot on soft grass..

And you? What’s on your summer to-do list?

Take 5 minutes and write yours down. I promise - it feels really good.

And no, you don’t need 3 weeks off or a plane ticket to make it happen.

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I’m wishing you a slow, soft, joyful summer. A summer where you listen to yourself.

Where you create a little less.. to dream a little more.

 The Oli-letter is also taking a little break. I’ll be back in your inbox after summer.

Until then - feel free to reply and share your summer reflections, or topics you’d love to read about here.

Talk soon!

Love love,